


Protecting Love

by Silverose27



Category: Walking Dead
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-09
Updated: 2018-07-09
Packaged: 2019-06-07 12:59:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15219668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverose27/pseuds/Silverose27
Summary: Merle and Daryl Dixon are top detectives at the Atlantis Police Department. When they are called to a familiar yet gruesome crime scene they are surprised to learn there are two survivors: one in a coma and the other is in grave danger. With Daryl fallin in love with her can he and his brother keep her safe or she is to join a long list of victims.





	1. Prolouge

**Author's Note:**

> Also on Fanfiction.net under bloodroseroxas
> 
> This is just a edited version thanks to my beta baileyxann (I haven't heard from her in a long time so i'm looking for new beta)
> 
> I do not own Waling dead is i did Beth and Hershel would still be alive.

Prologue

The crisp air burned 27 year old Beth Green's lungs as she ran through the snow behind her older brother, as he pulled her suddenly into the tool shed behind the cabin.

"Stay here, Beth. No matter what, stay in here. No matter what you hear or what you see, stay here," Shawn breathed out before closing the door, not realizing that he left a small crack for her to see out.

She placed a hand over her mouth in an attempt to stifle her screams as she witnessed her brother get shot down. The roars of engines filled her ears as her brother's killers left the property. After a few hours of shivering in the cold of the shed to make sure the men were gone, Beth decided to leave, only to see her brother shot dead in in the fresh fallen snow. She ran toward the cabin to check on her parents. She dropped to her knees with a gasp once her parents came into view, he mother's body surrounded in various pools of blood, even one between her legs. Her father lay close to her mother with his hands and feet tied up. A small groan escaped her father's lips, sending her running towards him. She ran to the kitchen to retrieve a phone to dial 911 before going back to her dad.

"Hang on, Daddy. Just hang on, please," she cried.

Chapter 1- The Dixons

The ringing of a cell phone hauled the snores in the room as 37 year old Daryl Dixon groaned awake. He heard Merle answer from the other room, confirming that it wasn't his phone, and then bang on his door a few minutes later.

"Wake up, Darlene!" He yelled from behind the door before barging in. "We got another one, only the is time they left two alive."

Daryl stepped past the police tap to see two black body bags being loaded up in the ambulance headed for the morgue, and a young woman sitting at the back of another ambulance. He then turned to the officer taking pictures of the crime scene, Officer Glenn Rhee.

"Where's the other victim?" Daryl asked him. Daryl liked Glenn- the guy was somewhat funny, but he tended to try too hard to talk to him when he didn't want to . Another one, Officer Abraham Ford, was taking notes, but he didn't pay attention to Daryl. Daryl didn't have much of opinion of the guy, expect maybe he was on steroids with the way his arms bulged.

"Already on the way to the hospital," Glenn replied.

Daryl nodded before looking around the crime scene, trying not to keep glancing at the girl by the ambulance. He had to admit the girl was pretty, despite the tear tracks running down her cheeks. She had golden blonde hair that was slightly curled and fell to her shoulders. Her eyes were a brillant blue that seemed brighter due to the powder blue sweater she wore with blue jeans. He quickly shook his head and turned back to Glenn.

"Well, what can you tell me?" Daryl asked. Glenn took the note pad from Abraham and gave him the camera.

"Well, the victim on the way to the hospital is Hershel Greene, local veterinarian,well liked in this town. His wife, Annette, was a RN at the hospital. The other body was 36 year old Shawn, who was currently in the middle of his last year of college studying to be a mechanic. The other victim is Beth Greene, Hershel's youngest. She's an eyewitness to what happened to her brother, but we haven't gotten a statement from her yet; she was in shock after the other ambulance drove her father off. There is one more member of the family we have yet to find, 42 year old Maggie Greene," Glenn explained, just giving Daryl the gist of what happened. Daryl nodded before motioning for him to continue. Glenn sighed, "Well from what we can see, two men exited a car, and came up to the cabin where Hershel and his wife were relaxing after dinner. The men surprised them, but the noise alerted Shawn, who ran to his sister's room, woke her up and then took her out the back toward the tool shed.

"Annette was brutally beaten and raped before being shot twice- once in the head and the second in the chest. Hershel was tortured as well as they made him watch the beating and raping of his wife before they shot him once in the chest, just barely missing his heart. The men came out here where Shawn fought them to protect his sister before they finally had enough and just shot him point blank in the head. We can't tell what blood belongs to him or the men due to how much is out here." Daryl sighed before looking toward his brother, who was on the phone with whom he guessed was Chief Rick Grimes, family friend and boss.

"Let me see if I can't get a statement from Ms. Greene," Daryl said softly.

"You know, if her older sister is alive it would be better if she didn't come back to town in case these guys are looking for her sister." Glenn said before turning to go help Abraham.

"But would you blame her if she wants whats left of her family close for comfort?" Daryl said more as a statement than a question. "It's a safe bet these men will be looking for her since she can tie them to the murders of her mother and brother. I have never known of a suspect to leave a victim alive, and if its who we think it is, then she is in a lot of danger," he added before walking toward the young woman.

WDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWD

The sound of skin hitting skin echoed in the small office as a fist hit the face of a grown man. "WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN SHE IS STILL ALIVE!? ARE YOU COMPLETE MORONS!? SHE COULD TIE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US TO THIS!" The man who threw the punch yelled. He paced quickly the entire office before turning back toward the men. In the most deadly voice he said, "Find her. Do what you please, but make sure that brat is dead, as well as her father. If you fail then don't come back. Run as far as you can because I will clean this up if you morons fuck it up again."

WDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWD

Daryl approached the crying girl and cleared his voice. She looked up to him with tears pooling in her eyes. "I'm Detective Daryl Dixon. Can you tell me what happened tonight Ms. Greene?" She licked her lips as she swallowed the lump in her throat. She looked indecisive.

"Ms. Greene, what you tell me will help us catch whoever did this to your family." He added. She nodded before wiping the tears away.

"We came up here like we always did before Shawn would go back to college, since he hardly came home for the holidays during the term. My older sister, Maggie, couldn't get away from her job as a reporter in New York due to some big story. Anyway Momma and I were in the kitchen getting dinner ready when they first pulled up. Three men got out of a black, or really dark blue, Rolls Royce. One was tall with brown hair and brown eyes, and another was a tall black man with dreads, and the last was a middle sized white man with glasses, he kin'a didn't want to be here," she started. "My Daddy and Shawn were outside chopping wood for the fireplace and stove when they pulled up. They approached my Daddy and Shawn started arguing about something I couldn't quite understand when I heard one of say that he "would regret this" before they all got back into the car and drove 'way. We ate and did what we always did before I finally went to bed.

"I was later awoken by Shawn shaking me hard and pulling me out of bed sayin' those men were back and they were hurtin' momma and daddy and he needed to get me away, so he snuck me out the back, and then we were running toward the tool shed. He closed me up inside and then I just waited for what seemed like forever before I saw Shawn and the black man fighting out in the snow then I saw the man shoot Shawn. I then heard another car drive off, and I waited maybe an hour beofre venturing out the shed and seeing Shawn and my Momma dead and my father barely hanging on," she said as fresh tears fell from her eyes. Daryl nodded in understanding as he wrote everything down in his notepad.

"One more question, Ms. Greene. Did you hear these men give each other nicknames or say their real names?" He asked, and she slowly nodded.

"One name caught my attention. The men were talking about someone wasn't going to be happy they didn't kill me," she said softly.

"Who?"

"The Governor."


	2. Chapter 1

Daryl felt his blood freeze in his veins when he heard that name fall from her lips." We may have to take you to our office for any further questions." he said before walking away to talk to his brother. He saw the irritated look on Merle's face and waited for the complaints.

"Officer Friendly just informed me that Sweet cheeks there will be staying with us until we solve this." Merle grumbled. " This was probably one of the local gangs in town." he added. Daryl sighed before looking down.

"This was the Governor's work." he said softly. Merle swore as he paced.

"The Governor? This is bad. Sweet cheeks is better off with us until we catch him." Merle said before he sighed. "go to the car and get it warm we'll take her up to the office maybe we can show her some mugshots for the others she saw." He said before walking toward Beth.

"Hey," Daryl started making Merle stop. " How are we suppose to solve this. We have never caught him with the other victims." Daryl said. Merle looked over toward Beth then back at Daryl.

" I think we now have an incentive. As long as he is out, She is in danger." Merle said before continuing toward Beth. Daryl ran his hands over his face in frustration before walking to his car and waited for Beth to join him in his car. Daryl's eyes kept drifting to the young woman laying on the couch in their office as Merle read the file they had now typed up. She had pulled her hair into a ponytail on the way to their office. After they got to the office, they showed her several shots of different pictures which she was never saw the two people from the crime. She later fell into a fitful sleep on their couch. He could see blood on her jeans from when she leaned over her father as she had untied his hands.

"You going to keep staring at her or are you going to do something?" he heard his brother ask. Daryl looked over at his brother and flipped him off. Merle chuckled before going back to reading the file. "Why don't you wake her up and take her to her house to pack a bag so she will have some clean clothes for when she stays with us. I'm going to call her sister and tell her whats going on then go home and set up the guest room for her." Merle said. Daryl nodded and stood to wake up Beth. She jumped awake and Daryl stepped back with the way her limbs flailed about. She looked at Daryl scared before she was aware of where she was.

"Sorry." Daryl said softly. " Just thought you might want to pack some clothes before going back to our place." He said awkwardly. Beth nodded before standing and trying to fix her ponytail. He led her out of the office to the car and drove off to her family home. Daryl was surprised at the size of the Greene's farm. He knew from the file that Hershel was a vet but he didn't know that some of the animals were brought to the family home. He followed Beth into the home and saw all the family photos. He watched her go up the stairs before he glanced at a photo that caught his attention. It had the entire family all smiling what caught his attention was Beth she had her hair in curls and was smiling as she was sitting on a swing in a white dress. She looked beautiful. He shook his head and went up the stairs to Beth's room. One wall was a sky blue and the other had a mural of the forest with a small creek in the corner. The carpet was dark brown to look like the forest floor. It seemed to fit her from what he saw. He saw she was on the bed with a couple of suitcases opened but she was holding a picture and crying.

"I'm never going to see them again am I?" she asked. Daryl looked confused. "Momma, Shawn, Daddy."She continued. " I heard them say Daddy might not make it." She looked up at Daryl before she wiped the tears away. "Why can't I just stay here and call my sister to be here with me? " She asked. Daryl sighed before sitting next to her.

"You can't. The man that did this is very dangerous and its best that he doesn't know about your sister." He said. Beth look confused.

"How dangerous?" She asked.

"Beth, that man if you want to call him that, has eluded the police for several years. He has taken many family hostage. He has raped and tortured all the women in the family while making the men watch as his men torture and beat them then kills them when he is done 'playing' with them. You are the only one who has survived an attack. The last survivor was found dead about a week into the investigation. That's why when we heard you had survived we decided to take every pro-caution to keep you and your sister safe. That's why its better if your sister stays where she's at and you stay with Merle and I." Daryl said. Bath nodded.

"So when Shawn took me to the shed he was protecting me." She said looking at the photo of her brother. Daryl nodded.

"Yeah he was." Beth nodded before she finally got up and started putting in her clothes into the suitcases stopping only briefly to lock eyes with Daryl.

"Will I come back?" She asked. Daryl looked back at her.

"I promise to you Beth Greene, you will get your life back once this man is behind bars." He said strongly. Beth gave a small smile before going back to packing her clothes

. "Well have you figured out where she is?" asked the Governor. His men shook their heads.

"It's like she disappeared boss, we can't find her anywhere." They said. "But we have informants everywhere looking for her." they added quickly when they saw his face start to turn red in anger.

"Good,good. May be its time to get my own informant on this as well. Leave" he said as he reached for the phone. When the men left his office and turned back to the phone when he heard someone answer. "Shane...yes I need a favor."

* * *

 

Daryl carried Beth's suitcases into his and Merle apartment and let her follow him to the guestroom. He placed both of the suitcases at the foot of the bed and turned to Beth.

" Well this is your room while you stay here. The second bathroom is through that door over there and its separate from ours so you can put whatever makeup, hair ties etc. Extra towels are in this closet." He said as he pointed in each direction he described. He saw her nodded and sighed. "You hungry?" He asked. Beth shook her head.

"I'm just really tired, I think I'll just lay down." She said softly. Daryl nodded.

"Okay, then I'll leave you be and I'll see you in the morning." he said as he walked to the door. He stopped and looked at her. "Good night." He added seeing she nodded again before closing the door. Beth took a deep breath as she opened one of her suitcases and took out a clean night shirt and pants before heading to the spare bathroom. She turned on the hot water removed her blood stained clothes and stepped into the cascading water. She scrubbed her skin til it was red and raw as she started crying again as she watched the blood go down the drain. She fell to her knees and cried for her family and the life she would no longer have. After being in the hot water for several minutes she finally turned off the water and wrapped herself in the dark green towel on the towel rack. She changed into the soft green tank top and white pants before slipping between the soft brown sheet and comforter. She laid in bed just staring at the ceiling before remembering an old song her mother use to sing to her to help her sleep.

_Goodnight, my angel_

_Time to close your eyes_

_And save these questions for another day_

_I think I know what you've been asking me_

_I think you know what I've been trying to say I promised_

_I would never leave you_

_And you should always know_

_Wherever you may go_

_No matter where you are I never will be far away_

_When we went sailing on an emerald bay_

_And like a boat out on the ocean_

_I'm rocking you to sleep_

_The water's dark_

_And deep inside this ancient heart_

_You'll always be a part of me_

_Goodnight, my angel_

_Now it's time to dream_

_And dream how wonderful your life will be_

_Someday your child may cry_

_And if you sing this lullabye_

_Then in your heart_

_There will always be a part of me_

_Someday we'll all be gone_

_But lullabyes go on and on..._

_They never die That's how you And  I Will be_

Daryl sighed as fell onto his couch. He threw an arm over his eyes as he tried to block out the images from the scene only instead of seeing Annette he saw Beth in her place. He felt the couch dip and removed his arm to see his brother handing him a beer as he sat next him. Daryl took a drink while keeping an eye on Merle who was just staring into the wall.

"We have a meeting with Rick in the morning. Lori is going to be there along with Lil' Ass-kicker so Beth can be with them while we talk with him." he said. Daryl nodded as he lit a cigarette. Merle watched him in the corner of his eye. "Something on your mind little brother?" he asked. Daryl gave a frustrated sigh as he pinched the space between his eyes.

"Yeah I just made a promise to that girl in there that she could return to the life she had before this shit happened once we catch the Governor. Only problem is I don't know when that will be because he is the most elusive son of bitch of all time." Daryl ranted." She has lost everyone she has here and she asks me if she can have the only family member she has left to be here so she doesn't feel so alone and I had to tell her no." he continued. He looked at Merle who just took the beer out of his hand.

"You need something stronger." Merle said before he stopped and heard Beth singing from the guestroom. He and Daryl made eye contact as they listened. Merle silently gave Daryl a glass of whiskey before rejoining him on the couch. When they heard Beth's voice fade Merle turned to Daryl. "I will help you keep your promise to the little songbird." he said.

"Songbird? seriously Merle." Daryl said. " How about calling her by her name?" he asked as he swallowed his drink in one gulp.

"Relax Darlena, You know I give everyone nicknames. I'm going to bed see you in the morning." Merle said as he drank the last of his beer before heading to his room. Daryl smoked the last drag of his cigarette before putting it out in the ashtray before getting up and heading to his own room. (next morning) Daryl awoke the next morning to the smell of bacon, pancakes and coffee. He got up quickly and went outside of his bedroom to the kitchen to see Beth plating the last of the pancakes. She was wearing a light blue short sleeve blouse and blue jeans, her hair was straight and held by a sky blue headband. She looked up in surprise.

"I...I thought I would make you breakfast to thank you." she said softly. Daryl closed his mouth and nodded.

"Uh thanks. I'm going to go shower real quick." Daryl said as he went back to his bedroom before grabbing a clean pair of clothes and headed to the shower. He came back out about thirty minutes later wearing a green shirt over a black tank top and blue jeans. He nodded to Merle who wore the same except the shirt was red with a black tank top. Daryl down one cup of coffee before pouring a second and started digging into the food Beth had made.

"Thanks for this Beth and you didn't have to say thanks." He said between bites. Beth shrugged.

"When I'm nervous or unsure I bake or cook." She said twisting a dish towel in her hands. Merle chuckled.

"We may have to keep you Little Lady this is good. All we usually have is take out." he said. Beth smiled unsure.

"I think I'll take that as a compliment." She said softly. Daryl chuckled lightly.

"Do. Merle never compliment anyone on their food except one, his girlfriend Carol." he said. Beth looked thoughtful.

"This Carol wouldn't happen to have a little girl by the name of Sophie would she?" She asked Daryl nodded. "I know her. Sophie use to come to the farm alot with her dog before he passed. Even after she still came over." Beth said.

"Huh. Did you use to give music lessons?" Merle asked. Beth nodded.

"Yeah then the holidays hit and...well you know...the cabin." she said. Merle nodded.

"Beth I am sorry about what happened and I echo my brother. We will catch this guy so you can get the life you had back." He said. " Or as close to it as we can." He said. Beth nodded as she swallowed.

"Thank you. Both of you." She said.


	3. Chapter 2

Merle, Daryl, Rick and Rick's old partner Shane Walsh were sitting on the front porch of the Grimes family home arguing on their next move.

"No Walsh we are not using the girl and her father as bait to catch this guy. He could **KILL** her." Merle said angrily. Daryl was just glaring at Shane as he heard Lori and Beth come into the living room.

"Didn't know you Dixons were such pussies. Here's your chance to catch this guy and you are not going to take it?" Shane asked. " Sometimes I wonder how you two became the top detectives if you don't take risks." He added. He grunted when he felt a fist enter his stomach and hugged his middle and glared at Daryl . " **WHAT THE FUCK** Dixon! You nearly made me puck up my breakfast."

"First off asshole **WE** became the top cause we didn't use victims of crimes as bait to catch our guys unlike you which caused the death of your witnesses, and second I personally made a promise to that girl's father we would keep her safe. Using her as bait would be going against that promise. " Daryl growled. He swung again and punched Shane in the nose breaking it. "And that was for calling us pussies." he said before he walked off the porch towards the woods.

"Daryl is right Shane. We can't use Beth or Hershel as bait to catch the Governor. " Rick said. "We need something else to draw the Governor out or his men."

"Why not release a false statement about another witness at the scene that saw everything that happened. The Governor is sure to send someone to 'silence' them." Merle said. Rick nodded in agreement.

"That might work." Risk said as he thought. " I'll get Michonne to come up with something to give to the press to print." He said. Shane shook his head in anger.

"You are all Idiots if you think this is going to work." He said walking off and leaving the property.

" You need to do something about him Rick. He's going to end up getting someone on the force killed." Merle said watching him. Rick nodded.

"He's changed since the break up with Andrea. His temper has gotten worse. The Captain wants me to suspend him and put him behind a desk until he calms down." Rick said as he scrubbed a hand over his face. He looked over to Merle then toward where Daryl had walked off. "when did Daryl go see Hershel?" he asked. Merle shrugged as he took a cigarette out of his front pocket and placed it in his mouth as he lit it.

" He went after dropping the girl off at our apartment." He said. " He only told me about seeing the old man and the promise since then he's been tight lipped about it."

_Merle looked up when the door opened for the fourth time that night and saw Daryl walking in. After hearing the girl sing herself to sleep Daryl had seemed to bolt out of the apartment like a bat out of hell. Merle had finished his beer and went back to the file to see if they had missed something. "Where did you go little brother?" he asked glancing back down to the file._

_"Just out to the hospital." He heard Daryl say._

_"Why did you go there? We got a statement from Beth." Merle said Daryl shrugged._

_"Thought he could say why the Governor's men are after his family. He didn't know but he made me promise him something." Daryl said softly._

_"What?"_

_"That no matter what happens we keep Beth safe."_

Rick sighed before he straightened up when he saw Daryl come back over. "Daryl what happened when you got to the hospital?" Rick asked when he got closer. Daryl looked like he wasn't going to say anything before he gave a frustrated sigh and took the cigarette from Merle.

" When I first got to the hospital the nurses wouldn't let me in the room but the doctor recognized me from the previous case and let me see Hershel." Daryl started.

_" Detective, He may not survive the week. We managed to repair most of the damage but there is nothing a doctor can do against a broken heart." The doctor said softly outside Hershel's room. Daryl looked inside and saw the man just staring into space._

_"Does he know his youngest is still alive?" Daryl asked. The doctor shrugged._

_"Nobody has come to check on him. You are the first." The doctor said. The doctor walked off leaving Daryl to go in the room. When Daryl entered he saw Hershel's eyes briefly meet his before going back to stare at the ceiling._

_" Hello Mr. Greene, I'm Detective Daryl, I've been assigned to your case-" Daryl started._

_"No offense Mr. Daryl but there is nothing you can do for me. MY family is dead. case closed." Hershel said in a dead voice._

_"Actually Mr. Greene, Your youngest Beth is very much alive as well as you oldest Maggie." Daryl said. Hershel looked back at Daryl with tears in his eyes ._

_"Bethy? She's alive?" he asked. Daryl nodded._

_"She's safe with My brother and I. We are going to do everything in our power to solve this for you and her Mr. Greene." Daryl said Hershel shook his head._

_"No son, It's too late for me. I heard the doctor and he's right I don't want to go on without Annette." Hershel said as the tears finally fell from his eyes. " Solve this so Beth can continue her life and follow her dream to be a music teacher. Maggie is already living her life in New York." He said softly. Daryl sat in the chair close to Hershel head._

_"Mr. Greene, I already promised this to Beth and now I am promising you. I will solve this so Beth can go back to her life before this happened." Daryl said. He jumped slightly when Hershel grabbed his wrist in a tight grip._

_"That's not the promise I want from you, son." Hershel said. " I want you to promise me that no matter what Beth will be safe with you. You will not allow any harm come to her while there is breath in your body. That means even after you solve this. She has no one else to check on her." He continued." Don't get me wrong, I love my oldest but Maggie always seemed to let Shawn or Beth take care of things if things got hard around the farm. So yes she will call Beth everyday for maybe a week or so then Beth will maybe get a call from her during the holidays. She'll be all alone." Daryl locked eyes with Hershel before he nodded. He felt Hershel release his wrist and lay back down on the bed like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders._

_Daryl cleared his throat before he asked Hershel his next question. " Mr. Greene Why did the Governor's men come after you and your family?" He asked. Hershel looked back at him._

_"That Mr. Daryl is between Shawn and Maggie. Apparently they found something on him and he got scared he attacked the rest of us cause he thought we knew as well." He said._

_"So you have no idea what she found out?" He asked. Hershel shook his head._

_"No, I wanted nothing to do with a criminal. I told that to Maggie when she called to see if Shawn had gotten this package from her. I believe that Shawn hid it in his room if you want to see it. " Hershel said reaching for the bedside table and handing a key to Daryl. "That's a key to the clinic. If Shawn didn't hide it in his room then he hid it in his desk at the clinic." He said. Daryl nodded as he took the key from Hershel._

Rick and Merle looked at him in surprise. "Do you have the key on you?" Merle asked. Daryl nodded and reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a golden key. Rick snorted.

"Well we know what our next lead is. Anyone up for a trip to the farm?' he asked.

 

After leaving Beth at the Grimes' home with Lori, Daryl went to the Farm to check Shawn's room, while Rick and Merle went to check the clinic. Daryl looked around the room from the door way. All he saw was a plain twin bed, a mahogany desk and chair with a computer with several books on mechanics lay open on its surface. There was a matching bookcase next to it as well as a bean bag chair in the corner. He went to the desk and pulled open several of the drawers but didn't see what he was looking for. He turned towards the bed and lifted the mattress. He found a few magazines then he saw a manila envelope and quickly grabbed it before setting the mattress back down. He looked at the front and saw the address of the newspaper where Maggie worked and the family home address. He also saw written across the back Confidential He opened it and saw several photos of the Governor with different people. He decided to look at those later before pulling out several pages of everything the Governor had done from embezzlement to various other crimes. He quickly stuffed everything back into the envelope before pulling his cell from his pocket and gave Rick a call as he ran from the room.

(Later that afternoon)

Daryl and Merle had picked up Beth from the Grimes home and headed home. They had split what they found in the envelope hoping to find something. They had left the pictures alone for the moment since they were more focused on the information the eldest Greene had collected. When they arrived at their apartment Beth had gone to the kitchen to prepare a late lunch for them while they went to the study to look over what they had found. They had been going over it for several minutes when they heard a light knock on their door. They looked up to see Beth with a tray of food for them. She placed it by their elbows before she quickly left the room. They looked to see she had made them hot roast beef sandwiches with fresh lemonade. Merle took the glass and took a long drink before he sat back to eat. He looked at the pile of pages before him and shook his head. " I see nothing in this pile that would get under the Governor"s skin." He said. Daryl looked at his own.

"Well there's this apparently the Governor's paying someone in the police force to erase all evidence against him. Several people but it doesn't list who." Daryl said.

"Great so we don't know who to trust on our own force." Merle said. "What next?"he asked.

 _"She with the Dixons, they will be impossible to get past to get to her."_ said a voice from the phone. The Governor sighed.

"Can Milton or Gabriel get close to them I know of their distaste of you." The Governor said.

_"Maybe. Distaste more like down right loathing. They just look for an excuse to punch me. If they can get the Dixons out of the way I can get the girl."_

" See if you can't get the eldest daughter down too. After all I'm sure she is missing her little sister. I have someone working at the hospital to dispose of the old man before he can say anything. No one must know of my dealing with the Mayor. After all this town is going to pay for what happened to my daughter." He said before hanging up the phone and heading to his assistant's office.

Beth was sitting in her room just staring out of her window when she heard a knock on her door. She turned to see Daryl at her door but not fully in. "can I come in?" he asked softly. She nodded before watching him sit next to her on the bed. " I went and saw your father the night you came here." He said. She looked at him in surprise." I wanted to see how he was doing." He added fidgeting slightly. She laid a hand on his that was tapping slightly in his nervousness.

"Its okay, I know he won't last the week Daryl. The doctor called and told me...I just haven't gotten the courage to go and say goodbye to him." she said softly. He turned his hand to grasp hers. " I know once this case is solved and you catch this guy I can leave. I've never been alone before. Before I was always with someone in the house, Shawn. Maggie, Mom-ma. It will be different." she said with a small smile.

"Actually about that. I have to talk with Merle about this but maybe once this over with, you could stay with us." He said softly. " I made a promise to your father that I would protect you even after this is all over with." He said "I would like it if you stayed." He added as he looked at her from the corner of his eye. She smiled sweetly at him.

"Why Daryl Dixon do you like me?" She asked softly while a small blush appeared on her cheeks. He nodded slightly.

"Yes I like you, but I never felt like this with anyone else. I mean I like the Grimes, Michonne and a few other people but you...your special." he said. Beth thought for a moment before placing a kiss on Daryl's cheek. He blushed as he looked at her.

"If Merle is okay with me staying when this is all over with I would love to stay." she said softly. She looked down before meeting his eyes again biting her lip. "Can you go with me later to see Daddy? I don't want to go alone." She asked softly. Daryl nodded as he had his thumb rub her wrist trying to soothe her. "And maybe we could hang out afterwards?" she asked shyly. Daryl swallowed before he nodded. He heard Merle call for him and patted Beth's hand

"Just let me know when you want to go to the hospital." he said as he left the room glancing back at her to see her response. She nodded as she watched him walk out of the room. She gave a soft smile as she turned back to the window .

"You sure this will kill them slowly?" the Governor asked holding a vial of dark yellow liquid. His assistant nodded as he opened a door that held a blonde woman tied to a chair.

"Yes sir. Miss Andrea here will help me verify that fact. Found her snooping around Shane's place." he said as he took another vial from his pocket and and filled a syringe. Andrea struggled against her bonds as the Needle got closer.

"Milton you did create a antidote right?" the Governor asked. Milton nodded before sticking the needle in Andrea's neck. She slightly screamed over her mouth gag as the liquid burned as it entered her system. They all waited in patience to see what would happen. Milton started to smile as he saw blood coming from Andrea's nose and her eyes.

"See the liquid busts the veins in the head making blood drip from the nose eyes and sometimes ears, Next her lungs will collapse and she will suffocate. She will drown in her own blood and suffocate from the lack of air. " He said as the veins in Andrea's neck started turning black as she gasped for air before she ceased moving. Milton looked toward the Governor to see him smiling sadistically.

"You did good Milton." He said as he cut the ropes holding Andrea to the chair. She slid from the chair to the floor. " Let's leave the Police another gift. Drop her off at the front steps of the station." He said to the two men behind him as he placed a hand on Milton's shoulder. " Let's see this antidote. I think we just found a way to make this town pay." he said as they left the room.


	4. Chapter 3

The drive to the hospital was quiet as Beth played with the bracelets on her wrists. Daryl kept looking at her in the corner of his eye as she bit her lip in nervousness. After dinner she had come to him and asked if he could drive her to the hospital she was done putting it off. Now she was either playing with her bracelets or her necklace when she had gone back to playing with her bracelets Daryl placed one of his hands on hers to still it. He rubbed his thumb on her wrists.

" Its going to be okay. If you need to you can cry in my shoulder." he said. Beth nodded her head in thanks as she swallowed as her mouth was suddenly dry. They pulled into the parking lot and walked slowly to Hershel Greene's room. Daryl had his hand on the small of Beth's back as they had walked rubbing small circles trying to soothe her slightly. She grabbed his other hand before walking into Hershel's room. Hershel smiled sadly at Beth as she walked in and took a seat next to him. Daryl moved behind her and leaned against the wall offering his presences to Beth. Hershel held his hand up for Beth to take which she did.

" I'm glad you're okay Beth." Hershel said. " How are Daryl and his brother treating you?" he asked.

"Okay. They give me space when I need it." She said. " Actually I think Daryl and I may be coming friends." she said with a little laugh as she looked toward Daryl.

"No, we already are. " Daryl said with a small smile toward her. She smiled back at him before turning back to her father holding back her tears.

"That's good." He said as he closed his eyes briefly before making eye contact with Beth again. "Sing for me Bethy please?" he asked. Beth leaned over and kissed her father's cheek "You don't have to ask daddy." she said as she closed her eyes and thought of a song before she started singing.

_Spend all your time waiting_   
_for that second chance_   
_for a break that would make it okay_   
_there's always some reason_   
_to feel not good enough_   
_and it's hard at the end of the day_   
_I need some distraction_   
_oh beautiful release_   
_memories seep from my veins_   
_let me be empty_   
_and weightless and maybe_   
_I'll find some peace tonight_

_in the arms of the angel_   
_fly away from here_   
_from this dark cold hotel room_   
_and the endlessness that you fear_   
_you are pulled from the wreckage_   
_of your silent reverie_   
_you're in the arms of the angel_   
_may you find some comfort here_

_so tired of the straight line_   
_and everywhere you turn_   
_there's vultures and thieves at your back_   
_and the storm keeps on twisting_   
_you keep on building the lies_   
_that you make up for all that you lack_   
_it don't make no difference_   
_escaping one last time_   
_it's easier to believe in this sweet madness oh_   
_this glorious sadness that brings me to my knees_

_in the arms of the angel_   
_fly away from here_   
_from this dark cold hotel room_   
_and the endlessness that you fear_   
_you are pulled from the wreckage_   
_of your silent reverie_   
_you're in the arms of the angel_   
_may you find some comfort here_   
_you're in the arms of the angel_   
_may you find some comfort here_

She looked back at her father who was smiling slightly with tears in his eyes."Thank you Bethy." He said " Why don't you go on home now, come see me tomorrow, When I'm not in so much pain." He said.

" OK good night Daddy." says Beth before kissing his cheek again and let Daryl lead her out as a nurse came in to give Hershel a shot of morphine. They were halfway to the elevator when they saw several nurses and doctors rush to Hershel's room. Daryl had to grab Beth around the waist to stop her from running to her father's room as they brought a crash cart into the room. The entire time as he is holding her back she is screaming. He finally saw all of them leave the room with their heads bowed as Beth finally breaks from his arms to run past them and Daryl hot on her heels to see Hershel laying peacefully on the bed before they pull the sheet over his head. Beth turns to Daryl and cries into his chest as they say time of death. Beth collapses to her knees crying as Daryl is trying to comfort her. He sees the nurse that came in earlier smiling as she turned the corner. Daryl takes note of what she looks like before leading Beth to the closest chair and sitting her there.

"Beth I'm coming right back just sit here OK, I'm going to talk to the doctor." He said in her hair before he placed a kiss to her forehead as she cried. Daryl walked up to the Doctor as he writes the time of death on Hershel's chart. " Hey doc, could the morphine have done it?" he asked softly. The doctor looked up at him in surprise.

"Mr Dixon, Mr. Greene wasn't scheduled for another morphine shot for another hour. Do you know who came in with the needle of morphine?" the doctor asked. Daryl nodded.

"On her scrubs it said Lerner." he said. " Dark hair in a tight bun, blueish green eyes." Daryl described.

"Alert your officers. Mr. Dixon. That woman was fired last week. Her name is Dawn Lerner." The doctor said as he went to the nearest nurses station to call security. "Hopefully she's not out of the building." the doctor added before he was put on with the head of security.

* * *

Dawn Lerner slipped into the emergency exit stairwell and ran down the several flights before she hit the underground parking lot. There she ran until she ran into the form of Milton. " Is it done?" Milton asked. Dawn nodded as she panted. "Good." he said before grabbing her around the neck and sticking her with a needle filled with the same liquid as what he gave Andrea. She gasped in pain as the blood came from her nose and eyes.

"Why Milton? I thought-" she started

"What? That I loved you? You were only using me to get to the Governor. " he said. " I saw the pictures Dawn. I should have known a woman like you always goes for the man with power not the man assistant to power." he said sadly as he watched her drop to her knees as she place a hand around her neck as the air was cut off. They heard the sirens going off for lock down in the hospital. " Seems you weren't as careful as you thought Dawn. " he said as he continued to watch her struggle to breathe before she finally collapsed dead at his feet. He walked back to his car and drove off just as the gates in the parking lot locked everyone else inside. He pulled a cellphone from his pocket and made a call. "It's done. Both targets are dead." he said.

" _Good_."

* * *

Daryl was sitting with Beth in his arms as she was now just sniffling as Officers took statements from him and the doctor as he rest locked for Dawn. Daryl looked up when Merle got off the elevator and sat on the other side of Beth and placed a hand on her back causing her to turn her gaze to him. Her eyes were now red and puffy from crying and Merle felt her forehead as he combed a few strands of hair from her face. " You okay Songbird?" he asked. She nodded then shook her head. "You do feel hot. Do you have a headache.?" he asked. She nodded. she swallowed a couple of times.

"I always do when I cry." she said in a watery voice. Merle nodded before looking over to Daryl.

"We'll get you home OK. We can do all this tomorrow or when you're feeling a little better."" he said before getting up and talking to the nearest officer. After a few minutes of Talking Merle came back over . "Go on and take her home little brother. Then meet me at the station. Carol and Sophia will stay with Beth til we get back." he said. Daryl saw in Merle's eyes that they found something but did not want to upset Beth even more than she already was. He placed an arm around Beth's middle and let her lean on him as he walked her out of the hospital to his vehicle. When they arrived at the apartment Daryl carried Beth inside since she had fallen asleep against his shoulder since he let her cling to him once they got inside the truck. He saw Carol in the kitchen making tea and Sophia watching cartoons. He quickly place Beth on her bed before turning to Carol in the doorway.

"We'll watch her while you're gone. I'll give her some tea and soup once she wakes. " Carole said. " Merle already old me not to open the apartment to anyone unless they give me the password and knock." She added when she saw Daryl 's worried look.

"And what is the password?" he asked dreading the word that Merle and Carol could have picked which judging by her expression was something he wasn't going to like.

"Pookie."

* * *

Daryl walked into the morgue and saw Merle, Rick and the coroner Bob Stookey standing by two bodies. His heart dropped when he saw that one of he bodies was looked at Rick to ask a silent question to know if Shane knew, which Rick shook his head to. He turned to the other body and was surprised to see the nurse they were looking for was on the other table. " So Bob, now that Daryl is here what can you tell us? " Rick asked.

Bob looked at all three men in front of him before walking over to Andrea.

"Where was she found?" Daryl asked, interrupting Bob before he can explain.

"Which one?" Rick crossed his arms, looking down at the bodies below him.

"Andrea, " Daryl replied. Rick sighed before leaning against Bob's desk. He stared at Andrea's body before looking back up to Daryl.

"Michonne found her on the steps of the police station this morning," Rick said. "We didn't know she was missing until Michonne looked through missing persons reports and saw that Amy had filed one on her a couple of days after Andrea called things off with Shane, but according to Amy, Andrea wasn't breaking up with Shane- she wanted him to take the next step and have her move in with him. Shane was the one to call things off because he didn't quite let Andrea explain herself. Apparently, everything came out mixed up when Andrea was trying to talk to him. " Rick shook his head after running a hand through his hair. "How am I going to explain this to both of them?" he asked himself softly. Daryl and Merle watched him for a moment before he gave a deep sigh and straightened up. "Go ahead Bob, what did you find?"

"Well, as you know, this is 38-year-old Andrea Coleman, Civil Rights Lawyer. Cause of death was drowning in her own blood due to lack of oxygen," Bob explained as all three men looked at him in surprise.

"She drowned and suffocated?" Ricked asked and Bob nodded as he tiled her head up for them. "How's that possible?"

"Well from what I can tell," he said as he pointed to a small needle mark on her neck. "She was injected with something that busted her blood vessels and caused her to drown in her own blood. The lack of oxygen part, I can't explain; it's like her throat closed on her as her lungs filled with blood. So, I can't really be for sure about what killed her until I can test what she was injected with."

"She die the same way?" Rick asked, pointing to Dawn on the other table, and Bob nodded. "What's her story?"

"Dawn Lerner, 42-year-old fired nurse. She was found in the hospital parking lot after killing Hershel Greene with an overdose of morphine." Bob said, pulling the sheet back to expose her arms. " There is one thing different with this one than Andrea. I found DNA under her finger nails that wasn't hers. So, we'll be able to send that to pathology and figure out who saw her last."

"Good, hurry up and get that to the lab. We need answers now." Rick said as he walked out. Daryl and Merle watched him before turning back to Bob.

"What about that stuff that could have caused this?" Merle asked, looking to Bob as he used a syringe to draw blood from both of the cold bodies.

Bob labeled both vials and looked back up to the Dixons, "All I can say gentlemen is: if this is what I think it is, I need to figure out an antidote fast, or we are in a world of trouble."

Beth awoke in her bed at the apartment and felt her eyes. She could tell they were puffy and probably red from her crying. She got up and headed to the bathroom to splash water on her face. When she had dried her face, she started toward the living room, but stopped when she saw a strange woman she had never met and Sophia there instead of the Dixons.

"Oh good, you're awake. I made some soup and green tea for you. It's the only comfort food I know," the woman said before standing to shake Beth's hand. "I'm Carol, Sophia's mother; I know we never officially met. I'm Merle's old' lady, as he would say." Carol laughed as Beth took in her appearance. She had grayish brown hair in a pixie haircut and wore a beige, cashmere drapery cardigan over a white shirt and black tights with white flats. Beth nodded a greeting to Sophia before turning to Carol.

"Where are Daryl and Merle?" she asked as Carol brought over a tray to the couch, full of a bowl full of soup and a cup of hot green tea. Beth took a seat as Carol sat next to her.

"They got called in by Rick," She answered." Merle asked me to stay here with you until they got back. If you ever want to talk about what happened, I'm here. Even if you want to call me I'll listen," Carol said softly, offering her condolences. Beth nodded as she took the cup of green tea and sipped it.

"H-Have you ever lost someone?" Beth asked, and Carol nodded slowly.

"But Ed Peltier was not someone to be missed. He was very abusive toward Sophia and me," She said before looking at Beth. "But Your father, he was always so nice to me when I dropped Sophia off for her music lessons with you."

"I just-I just don't know what to do now? I mean I can't call my sister down for a funeral. I haven't even buried Shawn and Momma." Beth sighed. Carol laid a hand on her knee.

"How about we do a memorial for them for now, and then when you can call your sister to come down, we can have a proper funeral for them?" Carol suggested, causing Beth to look at her with tears starting to pool in her eyes.

"Would you help me?" she asked.

"Of course, I will." Carol smiled and nodded her head as Beth hugged her, and she rubbed Beth's back as she cried once again. Sophia grabbed the cup of tea from Beth's hand before she joined her mother comfort Beth as she continued to cry.

"I think we need to tell Beth what happened to the Governor that made him this way," Merle said, looking at his brother out of the corner of his eye. "That's what her sister found in those papers. All we knew was he was a good cop gone bad cause he blamed the department for his daughter's suicide when they did that drug bust at her boyfriend's house. The truth is in those papers and that's what he's trying to protect."

Daryl bit his thumb as he thought about it. "Will it help her though? I mean half her family was killed because of what her sister found."

"Yeah maybe you're right." Merle sighed.

"What did those papers say?" Daryl asked.

"Penny Blake was found at her boyfriend's house when the drug bust happened. Penny was arrested along with her boyfriend cause she was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Philip Blake, aka the Governor, was the distributor of the drugs they had found at the house. Because of the new law the mayor had issued stating anyone found at a drug bust that wasn't directly involved with the drugs would be charged of withholding information if they knew. Penny happened to know her boyfriend was a drug dealer, so she was charged. When her father came down to release her after she told him she was innocent, the officers refused to let him bail her out, resulting to her committing suicide in her jail cell after she appeared in front of the judge and was found guilty. Philip quit the force and just disappeared, but the Governor's activities in the city skyrocketed. Philip blames the mayor and city for his daughter's death." Merle said, reading it straight off the paper while Daryl drove.

"So the man that trained us in the academy is the Governor?" Daryl asked. When Merle nodded, Daryl swore and punched the dash.

"Whatever he has planned, we're in trouble unless we catch him," Merle said as they pulled onto the street of the apartment.

They were surprised when they walked into their apartment to see Beth and Sophia asleep on the couch with a romance movie on in the back ground. Carol emerged from the kitchen and smiled when she saw them.

"They fell asleep not twenty minutes ago." She said as she watched Daryl move some hair out of Beth's face softly, as to not disturb her as she slept. He gently bent to pick her up and carried her back to her room, and Merle grabbed a blanket from the closet and covered Sophia. "He's really falling for her, isn't he?" she asked Merle softly.

"Yeah, and he's falling fast," Merle said as he came up to Carol and kissed her softly. Carol smiled as she snuggled into Merle's chest. " I need to ask you something, Carol. Things are starting to look bad with the Governor. If Daryl and I can't watch Beth, could you keep her safe? I trust you, especially since Daryl and I trained you after we found out about Ed."

"Of course. I'll train her a little of what I know in self-defense if it comes down to it," she nodded as she looked Merle in the eye.

"I hate dragging you and Sophia into this," Merle shook his head as he held Carol close. She framed his face with her hands and made him look at her.

"I knew what I was getting into when we started seeing each other. As for Sophia, I can send her to Aaron and Eric Raleigh outside of town," She said as she let their foreheads rest against each other.

Aaron and Eric Raleigh were old friends of Carol's who had tried to get her away from her ex-husband when they discovered the abuse. The final night she appeared more bruised and bloodied Aaron took his rifle and called Merle and together they put an end to Ed Peltier, after Merle had told him numerous times to lay off Carol and Sophia. They may have seemed overly friendly, but they were fierce when someone they cared about was being harmed. They also owned a small bed and breakfast just outside of Senoia city limits.

"Okay, in a few days send Sophia up there, cause I'm not letting' you out of my sight until he's caught," Merle said as he started dragging her to his room.

"Yes sir," Carol smiled coyly.


End file.
